H&M sees strong first quarter profit uplift
High street fashion retailer H&M grew its pre-tax profit by 36% to 3.6 billion Swedish kronor in its first quarter.
In the period 1 December 2014 to 28 February 2015, H&M group’s sales including VAT increased in local currencies by 15%.
The company said its collections had been well-received which had resulted in good sales and increased market share.
H&M chief executive Karl-Johan Persson said: “We have made a very good start to 2015 – in terms of both sales and profits. Our attractive customer offering and strong expansion both through stores and online, as well as our work on continuous improvement, are among the reasons for increased market share gains and good profits.”
H&M plans a net addition of around 400 new stores for the financial year 2014/2015. New markets for store expansion in the first half include Peru and Macau as well as Taiwan, where the first store opened in February. Meanwhile, H&M will enter South Africa and India in the second half of the financial year.
The company is also planning to open online markets in Portugal, Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria and Belgium in the spring, and in Switzerland in the autumn. In addition, a new flagship store on will open on New York’s Herald next year.
